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Airesflex
The Aires Reflex, Airesflex and Aires Automat are 6×6 TLRs made by Aires in the early 1950s. Until summer 1953, and perhaps later, it was distributed in Japan by Tōyō Shashinki-zai. All have 75mm f/3.5 lenses, and focus by moving the entire lens assembly. The Aires Reflex Y was advertised in early 1951. It has Fujita Excelsior triplet lenses and a Nishida Wester shutter (B, 1–200) with self-timer and flash synchronization.Lens and shutter: Hagiya, p.98. The nameplate says AiresReflex; under the nameplate, Aires Camera Ind. Co., Ltd.''Photograph: Hagiya, p. 92. The '''Aires Reflex YII' (advertised in spring and summer 1951) has an NKK shutter (same specifications as before, but with Kodak-style flash terminal) and a magnifying glass in the hood. The nameplate says Airesreflex. The Aires Reflex YIII (advertised from summer 1951 until summer 1953) is based on the YII but has semi-automatic film advance (align the "start" arrow with a marker; thereafter wind, cock and fire). Early examples have the Excelsior lenses; later ones Coral lenses. The Aires Reflex Z (advertised from summer 1951 until spring 1954) is based on the YIII but has a Seikosha-Rapid shutter (B, 1–500, synchronized), and, for the most part, four-element Nikkor lenses (the view lens of which is f/3.2). Variants have Zuiko and Coral lenses. Export models have Seikosha-MXL shutters. The nameplate of the domestic model says AIRESFLEX, with an underline extending the A and so that it almost touches the X; that for export says AIRES and below it reflex. The Z was well-received outside Japan, where Nikkor lenses were highly regarded: in 1953 when the Rolleicord IV cost $149 in the US, the Z with Coral lens cost $99 but the Z with Nikkor cost $165.From US Camera, November 1953; cited by Hagiya, p.99. The Airesflex U (later, Airesflex U, advertised from autumn 1951 until autumn 1954) exists in a number of versions: * Zuiko, Seikosha-Rapid * Zuiko, Copal * Coral, Seikosha-Rapid * Coral, Copal * Excelsior, Copal in which the Copal shutter has speeds of B, 1–200 with flash synchronization and self-timer. The nameplate says AIRESFLEX. The Airesflex IV (advertised in the second half of 1954) is a simpler version, with a red window for film advance. It has Coral lenses and a new Copal shutter (B, 1–300, with self-timer and flash synchronization). The nameplate says AIRESFLEX and underneath it Model IV. In summer 1954 it cost ¥17,000 including case.Advertisement placed in the May 1955 issue of Asahi Camera, reproduced in , p.114. The Aires Automat (advertised from spring 1954 until mid-1955) is the final model and the most advanced. It is based on the Airesflex U; film advance is semi-automatic and it is wound by crank and has a self-cocking shutter. The shutter is a Seikosha-Rapid with M and X flash synchronization, and the lens is a Nikkor or Zuiko. The nameplate says AIRES AUTOMAT. In spring 1955 it was priced at ¥43,000 including case, remarkably high for a TLR.Advertisement placed in the July 1954 issue of Asahi Camera, reproduced in , p.113. The IV appears in this ad together with the U and Automat, whose prices are not mentioned. Notes Sources / further reading * 347–53. (See also the advertisement for item 355.) * Hagiya Takeshi (萩谷剛). "Airesu no kamera: Yarūfurekkusu soshite 6×6-han niganrefu, 35mm kamera e (アイレスのカメラ：ヤルーフレックスそして6×6判二眼レフ、35mmカメラへ, The Aires cameras: From the Yallu Flex to 6×6 TLRs and 35mm cameras). Chapter 5 of Zunō kamera tanjō: Sengo kokusan kamera jū monogatari (ズノーカメラ誕生：戦後国産カメラ10物語, The birth of the Zunow camera: Ten stories of postwar Japanese camera makers). Tokyo: Asahi Sonorama, 1999. ISBN 4-257-12023-1 First published in issue 22 (September 1992) of Kamera rebyū: Kurashikku kamera senka (カメラレビュー・クラシックカメラ専科). * P.60. The Airesflex Z appears (with the Minolta Flex IIB) for its semi-automatic film advance. * Watakushi no ni-gan-refu kamera-ten (私の二眼レフカメラ展, Exhibition of twin lens reflex cameras). Tokyo: JCII Camera Museum, 1992. (Exhibition catalogue, no ISBN number.) P.26. Links In English: * Aires Camera Co. TLRs at tlr-cameras.com * Airesflex series, in particular the Airesflex Z and Aires Automat, in Hiura Shinsaku's camera site. (See also Hiura's tests of the Nikkor-Q.C. lens on the Airesflex Z in Japanese, and sample photos from the Aires Automat.) * Airesflex at OrphanCameras site (alphabetical listing) In English and French: * Airesflex at Sylvain Halgand's www.collection-appareils.fr In English and Italian: * Aires cameras including the TLR models, at Massimo Bertacchi's Innovative cameras In Swedish: * TLR cameras (with an Airesflex) at Samlarkameror.com * Aires Automat, lot no.111 of auction no.31 (2 November 2008) by LP Foto In Japanese: * Airesflex Z in the Camera database of the Center of the History of Japanese Industrial Technology * Airesflex IV from this page of old advertisements * Pages at Takasaki Motohiro's camera repair/maintenance site: ** Aires Automat ** Airesflex Z * Airesflex specifications at Japan Family Camera * Airesflex Z repair, by H. Arai * Pages at Aya's camera site: ** Airesflex IV ** Airesflex UA ** Airesflex YIII ** Airesflex Z * Sample photos from an Airesflex U * Airesflex Z and more pictures at Hayata Camera Laboratory * Airesflex Z at Nagoya's Camera Club * Aires Automat from Kawamasu Camera * Advertisement for the Airesflex and Aires 35 dated 1954, reproduced in Shashin-Bako Category: Japanese 6x6 TLR Category: Aires Category: A